The majority of light aircraft are configured with relatively small cargo compartments located aft of the seating for the occupants. As a result, these aircraft are not well suited for carrying relatively large, elongate items such as bicycles, motorcycles, snowmobiles, jet skis, and small boats. An issue frequently faced by pilots of these aircraft is therefore what to do about transportation and recreation after reaching a destination airport. Such an issue is of particular significance when accessing rugged backcountry airstrips where there may be little or no infrastructure. While the aircraft and pilot are capable of reaching these locations, there may be little to do when getting there other than, perhaps, camping and hiking with relatively little gear and supplies.
There have been several attempts to address this issue. Solutions have included, for example, creating hybrid vehicles that are capable of acting as both an aircraft and as an automobile. A modern example is the “Transition” created by TERRAFUGIA® (Woburn, Mass., USA). Nevertheless, these hybrid vehicles have not achieved significant adoption despite substantial efforts by their designers. In many cases, the compromises required to combine an aircraft and an automobile into a single vehicle result in a vehicle which is not particularly good at either function. These hybrid vehicles, moreover, are not typically well suited to off-road use.
Other solutions have focused on reducing the size of the cargo, namely, by providing folding land and water vehicles such as folding bicycles and canoes. Here again, however, the folding vehicles tend to be compromised in terms of strength and performance, and the solution does not lend itself easily to motorized land and water vehicles. At the same time, even when folded, these bicycles and canoes are often still too large to easily fit in a small aircraft. Moreover, even when such folding vehicles can be loaded in a light aircraft, they frequently reduce the ability of that aircraft to carry passengers.
For the foregoing reasons, there is a need for light aircraft designs that are readily capable of carrying relatively large cargo with elongate shapes such as bicycles, motorcycles, snowmobiles, jet skis, and small boats.